Histories

Sardanapallus king of Nineveh (deserted settlement), Ninawa, Iraq, Asia Ninus had great wealth, which he kept in an underground treasury. Some thieves plotted to carry it off; they surveyed their course and dug an underground way from their own house to the palace, carrying the earth taken out of the passage dug by night to the Tigris [47.416,31] (river), AsiaTigris, which runs past Nineveh (deserted settlement), Ninawa, Iraq, Asia Ninus, until at last they accomplished their end.

This, I was told, had happened when the Egyptian lake was dug, except that the work went on not by night but by day. The Egyptians bore the earth dug out by them to the Nahr an- Nil [31.1,30.166] (river), AfricaNile, to be caught and scattered (as was to be expected) by the river. Thus is this lake said to have been dug.

Now the twelve kings were just, and in time came to sacrifice in Hephaestus' temple. On the last day of the feast, as they were about to pour libations, the high priest brought out the golden vessels which they commonly used for this; but he counted wrongly and had only eleven for the twelve.

So the last in line, Psammetichus, as he had no vessel, took off his bronze helmet and held it out and poured the libation with it. All the kings were accustomed to wear helmets, and were then helmeted;

it was not in guile, then, that Psammetichus held out his headgear; but the rest perceived what Psammetichus had done, and remembered the oracle that promised the sovereignty of all Egypt [30,27] (nation), Africa Egypt to whoever poured a libation from a vessel of bronze; therefore, though they considered Psammetichus not deserving of death (for they examined him and found that he had acted without intent), they decided to strip him of most of his power and to chase him away into the marshes, and that he was not to concern himself with the rest of Egypt [30,27] (nation), Africa Egypt.